Take-off for grid trimming presses



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 A. R. WILLARD TAKE-OFF FOR GRID TRIMMING PRESSES Filed June 5. 1932 Aug. 7, 1934.

Aug. 7, 1934. A. R. WILLARD TAKE-OFF FOR GRID TRIMMING PRESSES Filed June 3. 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Awe-N700 free-081424400 Z Arroemsrs' Patented Aug. 7, 1934 UNiTE STATES 1,969,389 TAKE-OFF FOR GRID TRIMMING PnEss'Es Alfred E. Willard, East Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to Willard Storage Battery Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of West Virginia Application June 3, 1932, Serial No. 615,253

14 Claims. (01. 19343) This invention relates to an improved take-01f forgrid trimming presses, and the like.

The grids used in storage batteries are made by casting a lead alloy in molds. As is usualin casting operations, there is excess metal on the casting at the gate and other points, left there for casting or process reasons. The customary way to remove this gate and excess metal is by punching or shearing it off in punch or trimming presses, using dies properly designed for this purpose. Trimming or shearing off of excess metal is a common operation in many kinds of metal working, and in handling the harder metals the pieces of work after they are trimmed may be allowed to slide or drop from the trimming dies after being ejected, and be deposited in tote boxes or other receptacles without suffering damage. This is not the case with storage battery grids, as they are not only cast from a metal which is unusually heavy and soft, but they are little more than lacework in construction, and even a slight fall or bump can bend them out of shape or break the small ribs and bars composing them, and thus render the grids mere scrap.

The grid take-off of the present invention comprises a novel piece of apparatus over whichthe twin grids, when ejected from the machine, are adapted to slide by gravity and upon which they arrange themselves in vertical planes'upon supporting rails from which they hang by their lugs, the slide being so constructed as to work in conjunction with the force of gravity to straighten up any grids which may start down the slide more or less obliquely. By thus maintaining the moving grids straight with respect to the slide or the side guides thereof, they cannot become jammed and hence move in orderly relation onto the track provided therefor, when they can be conveniently grasped in groups or stacks by an operator and removed;

The principal object of the invention is the provision of a grid take-off which shall function to keep the grids straight as they move along the take-off, and thereby prevent damage to the grids and interruption to the operation of the machine with which the take-01f is used.

Another object is the provision of a take-01f of such character that the grids collected thereupon shall be supported in orderly arrangement side by side so as to facilitate'their removal.

. Other objects and features of novelty will appear as I proceed with the description of that embodiment of the invention which, for the purposes of the present application, Lhave illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side :elevational .view' of a grid take-off embodying the invention, shown operatively associated witha grid trimming press, a fragment only of which is illustrated.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. 5

Fig. 3 is a vertical cross sectional view taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig.1, showing the grid collecting or stacking portion of the takeoff.

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view tially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Inthe drawings I have indicated at 10 the bed of a trimming press upon which is mounted a die 11 having an inclined face and provided with a pair of upwardly extending grid locating and holding pins 12. The die 11 is adapted to support a twin grid, indicated in Figs. 1 and 2 by' the reference character A. In Fig.1 the excess metal across thetop of the twin grid is shown at A. The lugs of. the grid, shown at A and A engage with the pins 12 to thereby accurately position and support the grid upon the inclined face of the die'ill.

13 is .a movable die member,-which is adapted to grip the grid A when a cut is to be made. In the operation of the trimming machine, after the grid is placed in proper position by the oporator, he releases a control (not shown) which causes die .13,to descend and engage the grid, holding it firmly against die 11, after which a knife 14 travels downwardly, severing the excess metal A from the grid. Immediately thereafter one or more knock-out pins rise and kick'the trimmed grid off the pins 12, permitting it to taken substan- 65 slide downwardly over the face of the die 11. .Any convenient knock-out means may be employed rather. than that which is diagrammatically illustratedin Fig.1, where the pins 15 are arranged to be raised at the proper time in the cycle of operations of the press, that is just following the upward travel of the die 13and knife 14, by means of a cam or cams 16 on a shaft 1'7, the latter making one revolution for each cycle of movement of the press. It will be understood also thatin placepf knock-out means, the pins .12 couldbe readily actuated to be withdrawn at the proper time, but the knockeout means is somewhat to be'preferred in thatit imparts a positive impulse to start the downward travel of the grid.

A pair of angle brackets 18 are attached to the machine bed 10 by means of screws 19 or the like. In thesebrackets there are slots 20 which receive adjustably bolts 21 by means of which a transverse angle iron. brace 22 is supported.

the outer track members 23 byany removable fastening, as for instance by slot and screw connections 28 and 29 which. render the mounting adjustable. Near their outer ends the track members 23 are connected byan angle brace 25, bolt and slot connections 3 0 and 31 being employed in order to permit different spacing of the track members. The brace 25 extends outwardly considerably beyond the track members 23, and at its extremities is attached to diagonally arranged braces 32 that are provided at their forward ends with a .series of holes 33 for selective attachment to the machine frame 34 by means of screws 35. By means of this adjust- :ment the angle of inclination of the take-ofi may be varied to some extent.

v-Each of the outer track members 23 is provided with an integral ledge 36 which extends the full length of the track member. Together these ledges form a continuous slide for the body portions of the grids; being located attheir'forward ends closetoandslightly beneath the level. of the die-all, so asto receive grids readily from the die when the. knock-out operates. Part'way down the'take-off these ledges are provided with some means for temporarily increasing the. friction presented to the traveling. grids. In the case here illustrated .this means takes the form of humps 37 intheledges, which humps have. a gradual. increase 'inheight, as .compared with the straight part of the ledgesthereabove, until the peak of the hump is reached, after which the descent is likewise. gradual. On account ofuthe lowstrength-weightratio of the alloy used in battery grids it is essential tov support twin grids in the middle as well. as at the ends. Hence the intermediate track member 24 is provided, and has a slide surface-38 conforming'precisely to theslide surfaces of the ledges 36 on the outer track-members, including a hump 39 of the same contour and height as the humps 37 Uponthe .outer track members there are side rails 40 spaced above the ledges 36 a more or less uniform distance as far. down the take-off as the peaks of the humps 37, after'which these rails.

continue. in a straight lateral direction at a'slight downward. inclination. Thetops of the rails 40 "constitute a track for the support of the lugs A and A of the grids, and the inner sides'o-f the railsformguides forthe side edges of 'thegrids, as shownparticularly in Fig. 4. In addition to the guide surfaces afforded by the inner walls of thesiderails 46, I provide guide plates 41 and 42 flared outwardly attheir upper ends for the guiding of the grid lugs;' -The plate 41 is attached directly to the outer wall of thecorresponding rail 401-bu't' the plate 42 is attached to its rail through spacing washers 43 on' account of the greater length of the lugs A On thelowe'r and outer straight portions of the ledges 36 I mount a transverse bar 44-which is provided at its ends with g-rooves to receive the ledges and with adjustable plates 45, by means of which-the depth o'f-the grooves may-be regulated so as to provide a nice sliding fit. On this bar I secure an upstanding transverse plate 46 which is adapted to engage the outermost one. of the grids supported upon the rails 40. In order to insure the travel of the bar 44 and plate 46 always parallel to themselves and at right angles to the track members 23, I mount guide rods 47 in the bar. These rods extend a considerable distance toward the trimming press, and are guided by a transverse bar 48 having holes therein for the reception of the rods, the bar 48 being bolted to the outer end of the intermediate track member 44. The bar 44 with its plate 46 is urged inwardly, or toward the press, by tensile springs 49 attached at their ends to the plate 46 and to the bar 48.

In the drawings I have indicated in dotted lines a number of twin grids in various positions along the take-off. "In addition to the grid A, I have shown a grid B in Fig. 4 at the start of its movement on the take-01f. At 0 in Fig. 1 there is a grid in engagement with the hump 37 of the slide which effects the straightening of any grids which tend to travel in oblique position. The grid shown at D is in the process of being changed from a reclining posture to a vertical one. The grid position E and the several grids at F indicate the limits of a stack of grids collected in the take-off in front of the plate 46. a r

Operation. When a gridisdeliveredfrom the trimming press, the lower edge of its body moves onto the slide provided by the ledges 36 and the rail 38. A'moment later the lugs A and A move onto a track consisting of theside rails :40, and are centered by the plates 42 and 41 respectively. The first part of the travelof the grid down the take-off is upon straight surfaces bothvas to the ledges 36 and the rails 40. If at the end'of-this portion of its travel the grid is more or less askew, the forward end of the body portion will. encounter the hump 37 at that side of theapparatus first, which will present increased friction to that end of the grid, slowing it up more or less until the opposite end of the gridswings around to bring the two ends into transverse alignment. The rails 40 also have slight humps therein, which afiord more or less assistance to'the humps 37 in this straightening operation. The guidesurfaces on the inner walls of the rails 40 also help to bring the grids into straightened relation to the slide. i

It will be noted that the use of humps'inthe slide as a friction increasing means is particular ly suited to the purpose, inasmuch as it is-pesible to grade the friction increase to a nicety and to make the increase progressive from the, beginning to the peak of the hump, which is also ad.- vantageous as tending to prevent sudden swinging of the oblique grid, which might carry the other end of the grid too far forward and produce obliqueness in the opposite direction. Bythe time the grid has reached the position indicated by C in Fig. 1 any obliqueness in its positionhas been corrected. 5

' Thereafter the lugs of the grid travel forward on a: straight line, and the lower edge of the grid moving alongthe descending side'of the ledges 36 are spaced far enough below the rails 40, as will be evident from Fig. 1, to clear the lower edges of the grids. If the take-oft is :empty of grids'at the time, the bar 44and plate '46 will'be in 'a forward position somewhat to the rear of the indicated position of grid' E-jin the drawings. The grid in question w-ill then slide down the rails 40, which are set at a slight inclination, until it is brought to a stop by the plate 46. Successive grids are stacked up in front of the plate 46 and the stack, as it is increased by the addition of further grids, will travel slowly downward upon the rails 40 in opposition to the springs 49 until the operator withdraws some or all of themand places them upon a truck or other means of conveying'them to the location where the next operation upon the grids is tobe performed. The plate 46 keeps the grids in proper transverse arrangement withrespect to the rails 40, so that there is no danger of their acquiring such an angle with respect to rails 40 as to cause the lugs of the grids'to lose their hold upon the rails.

-While the use of humps in theslide is the preferred means of subjecting the grids to friction for straightening purposes, it will be understood that other friction increasing means may be employed without departing from thespirit of the invention. It will also be understood that other changes in the apparatus may be resorted to within the scope of the claims, for instance theintermediate track member 24 might be omitted where the grids are not very broad or where articles made of some material having a greater strength-weight ratio than lead alloy are being handled; Also, the slide, including the friction increasing hump, could be continuous all the way across its width instead of being formed upon track members as is the case herein illustrated.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A take-off for flat articles adapted to be operatively associated with the delivery end of a machine from which the fiat articles are delivered approximately fiatwise in a lateral direction, said take-off comprising an inclined slide having an upwardly extending transverse hump therein, whereby articles moving obliquely down the slide above the hump are straightened up by the hump and caused to move thereafter in, squared relation to their path of travel.

2. A take-off for flat articles adapted to be operatively associated with the delivery end of a machine from which the flat articles are delivered approximately flatwise in a lateral direction, said take-off comprising an inclined slide, said slide having means located intermediate its ends adapted to function equally upon the portions of the article traveling upon opposite sides of the center line of the slide for increasing friction between the slide and the article moving thereover, said means being adapted to present increased friction to the advanced front corner of an obliquely traveling article until the retarded front corner swings to transverse alignment.

3. A take-off for flat articles adapted to be operatively associated with the delivery end of a machine from which the flat articles are delivered approximately flatwise in a lateral direction, said take-off comprising an inclined slide having a portion of its length presenting increasingly greater friction to the article as it travels down the slide, whereby friction tending to retard an obliquely moving article is greatest on its. furthest advanced corner.

4. A take-off for flat articles adapted to be operatively associated with the delivery end of a machine from which the flat articles are delivered approximately flatwise in a lateral direction, said take-off comprising an inclined slide, a portion of the length of said slide being adapted to present greater friction than the remaining portions of the slide, whereby the furthest advanced corner of an obliquely moving article strikes the increased friction zone first and thereby receives a retarding effect tending to straight en the article, and side guides for said slide.

-5. A take-off for fiat articles adapted to be operatively associated with the delivery end of a machine from which the flat articles are delivered approximately flatwise ina lateral direction, said take-off comprising-an inclined slide having increased friction areas therein at opposite sides thereof and in transverse alignment, whereby the speed of travel of an article over the slide is checked by-said areas andwhereby the increased friction area first encountered tends to retard the movement of that end of theiarticle until the opposite end encounters the other increased friction area. r v 6. A take-off for twin .grids adapted tobe associated with the delivery end of the trimming press or the like, comprising an inclined slide, inclined side rails upon which theilugs' of a twin grid are adapted to slide while the body of the grid moves flatwise over said inclined slide,- a

transverse zone of saidslide being adapted to present greater friction than the remainingportions of the slide, whereby the furthest advanced corner of an obliquely moving grid strikesthe said zone firstand thereby receives a retarding effect tending to straighten the grid.

'7. A take-01f for twin grids adapted to be associated with the delivery end of a trimming press or the like, comprising an inclined slide, inclined side rails upon which the lugs of a twin grid are adapted to slide while the body of the grid moves over said inclined slide, said take-off having increased friction areas therein at opposite sides thereof in transverse alignment, whereby the speed of travel of a grid along the rails and slide is checked by said areas, and the increased friction area first encountered tends toretard the movement of that end of the grid until the opposite end encounters the other increased friction area.

8. A take-off for twin grids adapted to be associated with the delivery end of a trimming press or the like, comprising an inclined slide, inclined side rails upon which the lugs of a twin grid are adapted to slide while the body of the grid moves over said inclined slide, said take-off having means located intermediate its ends and adapted to function equally upon the two ends of the grids, for increasing friction between the take-off and the grids, said means being adapted to present increased friction to the advanced end of an Ob? liquely traveling grid before presenting increased friction to the retarded end thereof.

9. A take-off for twin grids adapted to be associated with the delivery end of a trimming press or the like, comprising an inclined slide, inclined side rails upon which the lugs of a twin grid are adapted to slide while the body of the grid moves flatwise over said inclined slide, said take-off having a transverse zone which presents increasingly greater friction to a grid as it travels down the take-off, whereby friction tending to retard an obliquely moving grid is greatest on its furthest advanced end and is equalized when the grid is traveling downward in squared relation to the side rails.

10. A take-off for twin grids adapted to be associated with the delivery end of a trimming press or the like, comprising an inclined slide, inclined side rails upon which the lugs of a twin grid are adapted to slide while the body of the grid moves fiatwiseqover said inclined slide, said slide having an upwardly extending transversehump therein, whereby grids moving obliquely down the slide above the hump are straightened up by the hump and causedtotravel thereafter in squared relation tosaidside rails. 7: I

r 1,1. A take-off for twin grids adapted to be, associated with the delivery end of a trimming press orthe like; comprising an inclined slide, inclined side railsupon which the lugs-of a twin grid are adapted to slide while the body of the grid moves fiatwise over said inclined slide,. a transverse zone of said-slide comprising means for presenting greater friction than the remaining portions of .the,s1ide, whereby the furthest advanced corner ofman obliquely. moving grid strikes the said zone firstland thereby-receives a retarding effect tending to straighten the grid, the. lower ends. of the rails. andslide being separatedsuflicientlyto leave the gridshanging vertically from the rails by their lugs; r v q 7 i 12. A take-ofiior twin grids adapted to be asso; ciated with the delivery end of a trimmingipress or the like, comprising an inclined slide, inclined side rails uponlwhich the lugs of a'twin 'gridare adapted to slide whilethe' body of the grid moves over said inclined slide, a transverse zone of said slide comprising means for presenting greater e5 F401 7 it v friction than the remaining portions of the slide, 7

whereby the furthest advanced, cornerv ot an, b.- liquely moving grid strikes thesaid zone firstand thereby receives a retarding- ,effecti tending to straighten the grid, :the lower end or the slide diverging. radually downward away-from, the railsin order, that the grids may be caused to as:-

sume vertical position gradually ,asvthey move comprisinga-track having arpair of spaced-in- =clined railsfor engagement with, the lugs of; the -grids, a second inclined;trackzpositioned for; engagement with thezlower edges'of the gridsysaid second track being arranged at a level near, the

level or the first track, whereby thegrids are. supported during travel approximately.fiatwise,at least one of said tracks being provided with means affording a transversehigh "friction z0ne:adapted to. present, suddenly increasedzfriction =to the travel of agridthereover. ,1

.- ALFRED ta. WILLARbL 

